5 liter minikegs

[z-bob]

Anybody use 'em? I have about a half a dozen that have been in my basement for 20 years, some of them new from a LHBS and some used commercial ones. No, I don't want to give them away. Just wondering if there's a tap that doesn't either puncture the keg or need an expensive CO2 cartridge. (I have a CO2 cartridge tap around here somewhere)

Can the kegs be reused several times before they rust? I assume that's why they never caught on, because 5 liters is a great size.

 

[swampbrewcrew]

I used the bungs mentioned in this thread for awhile without any major issues.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=176359

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Yes they can be reused, just need to clean and sanitize very well. Tap system with a 16 gram cartridge (for about a buck a pc at AIH)
https://www.midwestsupplies.com/party-star-deluxe-co2-tapper
A quick search brought up some directions for directions to make a tap too.

 

[dmtaylor]

I used to use the Heineken mini-kegs. I quickly learned that you really cannot reuse one of those more than like twice before it began to taste metallic. In the case of the Heineken kegs, the metallic taste was most likely from the drilling of the hole more than anything else. So sanitization never really came into play, as the rust became a problem before contamination.
Either way, it's not very viable for long term use because eventually the keg will get some gunk inside that cannot be cleaned out, leading to contamination. But for a one-off or twice or maybe three times if you're lucky, it does in fact work okay.

Pictures will be all gone because PhotoBucket.com friggin sucks:

http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=21461&hilit=heineken+dmtaylor